Faith Y., 1

Faith is the only child of her single mother. They live together with two cousins and the grandmother in a small two-room mud-walled house. The mother is unemployed, so the entire household relies on the grandmother, a small-scale farmer, to provide for all of them. When healthy, eight-month-old Faith is a cheerful baby who smiles easily and even plays with strangers. According to her mother, Faith began having diarrhea, which they initially assumed was a common issue for children her age. When the diarrhea continued the next day, the mother gave her some home medication, hoping it would help. By the third day, Faith’s condition worsened, having more than 10 episodes of diarrhoea in a day, she became weaker and started vomiting. Concerned, the mother rushed her to a nearby dispensary, where they were immediately referred to Siaya County Referral Hospital for further care.

Faith was brought to the hospital with repeated episodes of vomiting and diarrhea, which quickly left her severely dehydrated. Due to the seriousness of her condition, she was admitted for inpatient care. While in the ward, she received oral rehydration solution (ORS), Crystapen penicillin, zinc sulfate, IV Ringer’s lactate, and other supportive medications to restore her hydration and manage the infection. Faith responded well to the treatment, and her symptoms gradually improved. Once she was stable and able to tolerate oral medications, she was discharged home to continue with her recovery. Her mother expressed relief and gratitude for the care that helped Faith regain her strength.

The prognosis of Faith in the short term is good with early and adequate treatment, as the infant will hopefully respond positively to fluid correction and supportive therapy. Gastroenteritis-related dehydration in infants carries a risk to life if intervention is delayed; however, in this case, timely medical care prevented progression to irreversible complications. However, to make a full recovery without long-term sequelae, the following is key: Adequate feeding and hydration are maintained together with observing proper hygiene.